I just like him. And this is one big reason why: (re: people trash-talking bestsellers)
Nathan Bransford has left a new comment on the post "You Tell Me: Why is it So Hard to Tell if Our Writ...":THANK YOU, Nathan!
anon-
Yeah, this is definitely a topic on which I get snappish.
In response, I'd point again to this post, which explains in detail why I bristle.
But really, I think there are a couple of factors at work:
1) People compare apples to oranges when it comes to books. If you're reading THE DA VINCI CODE and hoping for DUBLINERS that's your fault, not Dan Brown's. Dan Brown did what he set out to do really, really well.
2) Saying a bestseller is trash is kind of like saying a bench warmer on an NBA team is a terrible basketball player. Um. Yeah. He's no LeBron, but he's in the top 0.000000005% percentile of basketball players in the entire world.
3) A book has to do something really, really well to make it through the publishing process and to attract readers in huge numbers and prompt people to wait in line for the next one.
4) We're smarter and better than that. We're writers, right? Use your words, say something a little more nuanced than "That book sucked."
I appreciate people like you.
Well said! I feel like standing and clapping in agreement. :)
ReplyDeleteThis is why we all love Nathan. I think we need a name. Nathanites? Bransfordaholics?
ReplyDeleteI just stopped over from his blog. I agree about the cheering. It's so easy to criticize people who have the career we want. D. Brown is one talented guy at writing what the public likes to read.
I think what Nathan's really telling us is that amateurs need not apply. We need to learn the craft--and the business--first.
Precisely why I <3 Nathan. :)
ReplyDeleteI think we are called Nathanites...at least it sounds familiar. ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnne, I agree. "Learn the craft and stop whining." I think that's all anybody in the publishing biz wants from writers. LOL. But Nathan says it in a nice, eloquent manner we all appreciate.
Thanks for stopping by, ladies!
Ugh. I hate it when people cut down a novel just because it's popular. As if a book is bad just because the world likes it. What's up with that?
ReplyDeleteBut I love Nathan Bransford! His blog is a regular stop on my blog surf daily!